Appointments

Ulrich Bensel has been appointed as Chief Human Resources Officer at H World International

Deutsche Hospitality has put the finishing touches to its new management tier. Ulrich Bensel has been appointed to the new position of Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) with immediate effect. Along with Daniela Schade, Chief Commercial & Distribution Officer, Florian Daniel, Chief Information Officer and Claus-Dieter Jandel, Chief Development Officer, Ulrich Bensel forms the new C-Level of Deutsche Hospitality. In his capacity as CHRO, Mr. Bensel will head up People Management & HR Operations, People & Organisational Development and HR Recruiting & Employer Branding. He will report directly to Dr. Ulrich Johannwille, CFO and Board Member with responsibility for Human Resources at Deutsche Hospitality.

Tina Petersen has been appointed as Director of Human Resources at The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa Avon, Vail Valley

A skilled human resources professional with more than 20 years of experience, Petersen most recently served as a Senior Human Resource Manager at Vacasa. Other previous experience includes leadership positions at Wyndham Vacation Rentals, Howard Head Sports Medicine, The Home Depot and Target. She is certified by the Society for Human Resource Management & HRCI. A graduate of West Texas A&M University, Petersen is a previous board member of the High Country Human Resources Association and the Vail Valley Lacrosse Club.

Samiha Al Balooshi has been appointed as Director of Human Resources at Jumeirah Zabeel Saray

Jumeirah Group, member of Dubai Holding, announces the appointment of new Human Resources Director Samiha Al Balooshi at Jumeirah Zabeel Saray, following her successful career in the industry across the past 13 years.Commencing her new role in October, Samiha has attained over a decade of industry experience. She brings with her a wealth of insight into areas including employee relations, HR business partnering and talent acquisition across the banking, hospitality and the public sector. Her current role sees her taking the lead with the Operational HR Team and Learning & Development programs, in addition to overseeing all HR services, operations, employee relations, Emiratisation and performance management.Samiha has been with the Jumeirah Group since 2014, when she came on board as part of the Emiratisation Team to drive efforts to develop and recognise local talent. From this role, she moved forward to take on the position of Assistant HR Manager with the Regional HR & Corporate Office, where she was tasked with providing HR support across all Dubai based hotels and supported strategic projects for the region. Most recently, her previous role within the Group as Human Resources Manager and acting Senior HRBP at Jumeirah Beach Hotel, saw her leading a team accountably for HR Services, Employee Relations, Employee Engagement, Emiratisation and Performance Management.Her tenure with the Group has seen her achieve numerous awards from an internal and external front. Highlights of this include her recognition as HR Rising Star of the Year Award by CIPD Middle East Sept 2020, an over five internal appreciation certificates and letters from various departments within the Group for her outstanding performance across 2015 till date.Samiha is a graduate in Business Management from the University of Dubai and an Associate Member of the CIPD. When outside of work she is passionate about photography, horse riding and travelling to new destinations.

Monica Melancon has been promoted to Chief Human Resource Officer at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: WH) today announced the promotion of its human resource leader for managed hotel operations in North America, Monica Melancon, to Chief Human Resource Officer, effective March 1. Ms. Melancon spent 15 years in increasing roles of responsibility at Target, rising from HR executive at the unit level to a senior regional HR executive overseeing a region with $3 billion of annual sales and over 15,000 team members. In 2015, she joined La Quinta Management LLC and has been consistently promoted since Wyndham's acquisition of La Quinta to lead human resources operations for all Wyndham managed hotels in North America and over 8,000 Wyndham team members. Ms. Melancon holds a Bachelor of Business Administration, Management & Marketing degree from East Texas Baptist University in Marshall, Texas. She is currently based in Wyndham's Irving, Texas office and will be relocating to Wyndham Hotels & Resorts' world headquarters in Parsippany, N.J.

Taronish Pardiwalla has been appointed as Director of Human Resources at Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street

A 10-year hospitality veteran, Taronish Pardiwalla, began her career in 2011 at Hilton Auckland in a number of human resources roles before moving to Hilton Sydney in 2013 as human resources advisor. In 2016, Pardiwalla was appointed assistant training manager, managing the learning and development training for over 450 team members. She was promoted to human resources manager at West Hotel as part of the pre-opening team in late 2017 before returning to Hilton Sydney as human resources manager in 2019.

Matthew Brosenne has been promoted to Vice President of Human Resources, APAC at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, APAC

Matthew Brosenne, Vice President of Human Resources, APAC, will take on an expanded portfolio to oversee all HR matters across the division. With growing regional interdependence, Matthew will drive a comprehensive HR approach utilizing the Company's best practices. Having worked in Asia for over 25 years, he possesses a wide breadth of business insights as well as human resources strategies.

Laura Fuentes has been promoted to EVP & Chief Human Resources Officer at Hilton

As Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, Fuentes will lead Hilton's people and culture strategy - a critical function in a business of people serving people. Fuentes has been with the company for seven years, most recently as Chief Talent Officer, where she led many of Hilton's award-winning programs including recognition, compensation, benefits and diversity. Prior to joining Hilton, Fuentes spent six years at Capital One Financial in various corporate strategy and Human Resources roles: leading workforce analytics, recruitment, and compensation functions for the organization. Prior to Capital One, she worked at McKinsey & Company in their Madrid, New York, and Washington D.C offices, where she served clients across financial services and non-profit sectors. Fuentes represents Hilton on the board of directors of MAKERS Women and also serves on the boards of directors of Make-a-Wish Mid-Atlantic and Arlington Free Clinic.

Annette Engmose has been appointed as Director of People & Culture at Villa Copenhagen

Annette Engmose brings more than 17 years of experience in human resources to her position as Director of People & Culture, along with a philosophy for success that focuses on providing a framework for growth and wellbeing where team members take responsibility and play well together. In her role, Annette oversees all recruitment, team development, and training programs to ensure that the hotel's vibrant approach to offering best-in-class guest experiences feels culturally Danish - providing an elevated service that is honest, playful, and respectful of personal space. Prior to joining Villa Copenhagen, Annette was Head of Human Resources at Heinmann Retail Denmark and gained extensive managerial experience as an HR Consultant for SAS Scandinavian Airlines.

Antoine Berberi has been named Senior Partner at The Boutique Search Firm

After 4 years with Hilton International in Washington, D.C. and Toronto, Berberi joined InterContinental Hotel Group for what would be an 11-year global career in such locations as New Orleans, Miami, Bali, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi. He was an early joiner of the luxury boutique field, as General Manager of Thompson Hotels in New York, Beverly Hills and Hollywood (Hollywood Roosevelt). When Thompson merged with Joie de Vivre Hospitality and subsequently Alila and Destinations Hotels & Resorts to create Two Roads Hospitality (now a subsidiary of Global Hyatt) he stayed on as Regional Vice President of Operations for the West Coast and Mexico. In early 2018, Berberi was recruited by PROPER Hospitality as Senior Vice President of Operations, leading the opening of 3 multiple cutting-edge properties from the ground up, developing unique design and food and beverage offerings for each location and recruiting all key positions to ensure long term success.

Shahnaz Hassan has been appointed as Group Director of Human Resources at Millennium Hotels & Resorts

In her role, Hassan will lead the HR department, while supporting the group's current expansion plans in the region. A graduate of the Higher Colleges of Technology, Dubai Women's College, Hassan brings 25 years of experience to her position. Prior to her job with Millennium, she was HR director at Union Properties, Uptown Mirdiff, prior being promoted to GM. She also has senior experience across General Electric, Damac Holdings, HSBC and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank.

Stephanie Legros has been named Director of Human Resources at Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Dockside Inn and Suites

Stephanie Legros has been named Director of Human Resources. She was previously opening Director of Human Resources for Universal's Aventura Hotel and Complex Associate Director of Human Resources for Loews Royal Pacific Resort and Loews Sapphire Falls Resort. Legros' robust 18-year career with Loews Hotels & Co began at Loews Philadelphia Hotel and brought her to Orlando in 2011, where she has served in a variety of human resources leadership roles.

Laura Watterson has been appointed as Senior Vice President, Talent & Rewards at CWT in America

CWT, the B2B4E travel management platform, has appointed Laura Watterson as Senior Vice President, Global Talent & Rewards. In this newly created role, Laura and her team will provide enterprise-wide thought leadership and counsel to senior executives on talent acquisition, talent management, learning and development, as well as compensation and benefits. Additionally, Laura will build strategies and initiatives that position the CWT business for even greater growth, innovation and impact, and plan for the workforce needs of today and into the future.

Dario Espinoza has been appointed as Director of Human Resources at JW Marriott, Anaheim Resort

Dario Espinoza joins the executive team with over eight years of human resources experience. Most recently, Espinoza served as Market Director of Human Resources, where he oversaw hotel openings at Marriott Irvine Spectrum and Lido House, Autograph Collection—the first two full-service hotels managed by Marriott to open in Orange County in over 30 years. Espinoza also held leadership roles in San Francisco Marriott Union Square, as well as Marriott Marquis Washington, D.C. In April 2019, Espinoza was awarded the Human Resources Mustang Award for successfully opening two full-service hotels within four months of each other.